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And Then There Was One..
By Matt Schwab
Oh, what a night!!
The Las Positas men's basketball team is the talk of the state after a stunning victory over No. 1-ranked City College of Francisco, 81-69, in a battle of unbeatens on Friday night.
The Hawks were jubilant after earning the program's first win over the Rams since January 2017.
Las Positas (16-0, 2-0 Coast-North), ranked third in the state, is the only remaining unbeaten JUCO men's team in the state. Hawks standout guard Elijah Mobley, out of Weston Ranch High, led the way with 26 points and five rebounds. He leads the Hawks averaging 19.6 points a game.
"It's obviously a huge win. Everybody's really excited," Las Positas coach James Giacomazzi said of the memorable road triumph. "It's really big, but as soon as I woke up the next day I kind of had to turn the page. You'd like to celebrate it longer, wouldn't you? But you don't have that luxury in the Coast-North."
Indeed, the Hawks will have another stern test at home against district-rival No. 13 Chabot at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, in the power-packed conference.
Clearly, Las Positas did something special in San Francisco, limiting the high-scoring Rams to under 70 points, the fourth time that's happened to the Rams in four years. Consider that CCSF (15-1, 1-1) beat Canada 126-49 in their previous game.
"How about that?" Giacomazzi said the Hawks' defensive effort.
CCSF is perennially a dominant force with four CA championships and five runner-up finishes, among a long list of accomplishments. But the Hawks have an impressive track record of their own under Giacomazzi, making the playoffs every year and advancing to the State Championships Elite 8 for the first time in 2021-22. He is also known for sending players to four-year programs.
How did Las Positas pull it off against a team widely predicted to win the state title?
"We did what we do," Giacomazzi said. "We tried to apply some pressure, we tried to contain the basketball. We tried to identify key players and take them away from what they want to do best, and I just thought our kids really executed the game plan very well. We came in with a plan and we executed the plan, and we were fortunate enough to come out with a win."
The Hawks carried some momentum into Friday night from their previous game — a come-from-behind triumph over College of San Mateo, 72-59, on Jan. 8. They outscored the Bulldogs 50-30 in the second half after trailing by seven at halftime, in their first true test of the season.
Jorren Edmonds (Washington HS) came up big against CCSF with 17 points, seven rebounds, six assists, two steals, and two blocks. He is averaging 10.3 points and 7.0 rebounds a game, shooting 54 percent from 3-point range and 82 percent on free throws.
Sterling McClanahan (Vanden), averaging 14.1 ppg, added 16 points and six rebounds. Elliot Mobley (Weston Ranch) had 10 points, three assists, and three rebounds.
Mecca Okereke (Menlo-Atherton) added eight points, four rebounds, and four big blocks.
Elijah Mobley did what he's been doing all season after make first-team all conference last season.
"We expected him to have a big year and he's doing exactly that," Giacomazzi said. "He's averaging around 20 a game. He's just a fierce competitor. A lot of times he's going to make plays … He's really competing at a high level and he's been playing very consistent."